Three smouldering bodies found in a Centurion field early on Monday morning have presented local police with one of their biggest mysteries to date.
Erasmia police spokesperson Constable Tumisang Moloto said the murder occurred at around 02:30 in a veld near Copper Leaf Estate.
ALSO READ: UPDATE: Burned bodies found in Centurion
A local security company had gone to investigate a fire in the veld, and stumbled upon the gruesome scene. Provincial police spokesperson Captain Kay Makhubela said on Tuesday morning that they were still no closer to solving the case.
The identities of the victims had not yet been established. Nor had police identified suspects, or determined their motive.
Their only lead was that a family from Northcliff in Johannesburg had come forward to say that three of their family members had been abducted during a house robbery on Sunday evening.
The family said a 56-year-old man and two women aged 54 and 22 were kidnapped from their home on Sunday evening.
The kidnappers fled in the family’s luxury sedan car. Police were pursuing this as a lead, and working with the family.
ALSO READ: Three burned bodies found near Centurion
“We will be accompanying the family to the mortuary today (Tuesday),” said Makhubela. “A post mortem is being conducted at the government mortuary.”
They were hoping that DNA tests could help to identify the victims. “The bodies are burnt beyond recognition, and there is nothing that police can work on except with DNA tests,” he said.
Police forensics are also working on establishing the gender and ages of the victims.
Police are investigating three cases of murder. But the case is made more complex by the fact that the bodies had been burnt beyond recognition. Witnesses described a gruesome scene.
The bound and gagged bodies lay smouldering, already burnt beyond recognition. Scattered around were of ashes, blood and condoms.
According to media reports a family member who is a dentist went to the morgue on Monday evening and positively identified the family through their dental records.
Rekord tried contacting the family to confirm the information, but no response was received.
Police on Tuesday afternoon could still not confirm the identities of the victims.
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